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According to the Mayo Clinic, the average American walks between three to four thousand steps per day. This includes office workers, who spend a significant amount of time sitting down. When you take into account the number of people working in jobs like food service or construction, one thing is clear: we put a lot of pressure on our feet.
As always, rest is one of the easiest ways to help your feet recover. But to go the extra mile and really accelerate that recovery, a relaxing foot massage goes a long way. With a foot massager, you’re just moments away from a relaxing foot massage.
From the moment you put your feet on a massager, you will feel more relaxed and stress free. Just like with normal massage, a foot massager improves blood flow and improves recovery from injury or simple stress. This is especially useful for runners who feel slight foot pain after a long run. In this article, we will go over the different types of foot massagers and how they differ so that you can choose which kind of massage works best for you.
Manual Foot Massagers
Manual foot massagers are perhaps the most common kind of foot massager on the market. If you’ve ever used a foam roller, then you already know how most manual foot massagers work. You basically rub your heel and foot around the roller, almost like you were “palming” it with your foot. This is a very simple way to give yourself a foot massage.
While manual foot massagers can be quite effective, they are only as effective as the user. As such, some people will be able to get more out of a manual foot massager than other. However, when you compare manual foot massagers with electric foot massagers, the difference in efficacy is quite staggering.
Electric Foot Massagers
For a simple, yet effective foot massage on demand, you may want to look into an electric foot massager. Unlike manual foot massagers, electric massagers take just about all of the work out of your hands. Where you once had to roll your feet around to get the full effect of the massager, an electric foot massager provides all the oscillatory and rolling motions you need to accelerate your recovery. Simply put, the vibrations of the electric massager do the work for you. In fact, these very same vibrations do more than help your feet recover; they help improve your mood and fight depression and anxiety.
Electric foot massagers are very easy to use. Simply place your feet on the massager, choose your setting (such as speed, intensity, and massage) and just sit back and relax!
Although electric massagers tend to cost slightly more than manual foot massagers, their ease of use and overall effectiveness more than make up for the price difference. Plus, when you compare them with other recovery tools, foot massagers still tend to fall slightly lower on the price scale. When you consider that many electric massagers, such as the Vitalize foot massager will heal your foot issues, head to toe, there can be no room for doubt: electric foot massagers are well worth it!
Water Foot Massagers
Another popular way to get a foot massage is actually with water. This is usually referred to as a foot spa. They are especially common with athletes after an intense game or workout. They work wonders for relieving tension, improving blood flow, and strengthening muscle recovery. You can add in essential oils or salts to make this an even more pleasant experience. On top of this, just about all water foot massagers also have heat settings, allowing you to add heat therapy to your post-workout massage.
However, most water massagers are cheap – and not just in an “affordable” way. Some have a faster flow of water and more powerful rolling action than others. They’ll often require extensive cleaning. When a foot spa isn’t cleaned regularly, the risk of getting a fungal infection only increases. But when you take good care of a foot spa and use it properly, it makes a great supplement to any workout.
They are also very simple to use. Simply pour enough water to cover your feet without filling the foot spa. After this, add bath salts if desired. Then, pick your heat and massage settings and begin! As always, refer to your massager’s safety instructions to ensure safest possible use.
How Often Should You Use A Foot Massager?
With foot massagers, the question isn’t so much “how often” you should use it as much as it is “how long” your sessions should be. A single session should last no longer than 20 to 30 minutes. However, feel free to have multiple sessions per day. In general, three times per day is the maximum recommended number of sessions (for a total of 90 minutes.)
Most foot massagers will have a timer and auto-shut off feature in order to prevent overuse. To keep things simple, it’s always best to follow the manufacturer’s instructions on frequency and length of use. As no two people are alike, results may vary. However, three 30-minute sessions will suffice for the average user.
Final Thoughts
There are few recovery tools as universally loved as a foot massager. A foot massage always feels great. They help your feet recover faster after a long shift on your feet or long run. And as seen with foot spas, they are usually a very relaxing experience. Even old-school manual foot massagers are a convenient tool to help your feet heal after extensive use.
No matter if you’re an athlete, traveler, or office worker – a foot massager works great for people from all walks of life and age groups. Plus, a good foot massager doesn’t cost much more than a dinner out for two. A good foot massager usually doesn’t cost much, so go ahead and buy one. It’s a great investment!
Author
Joel Gottehrer is the Co-Founder of Lifepro Fitness and has dedicated his life to helping people transform theirs. With over 12 years of experience in the fitness industry as a personal trainer and owner of two personal training studios, Joel has a wealth of knowledge when it comes to helping transform lives. After suffering from physical injuries, Joel and his business partner, Abraham Brach, came together with a common goal to alleviate the pain caused by their injuries.
They continued to find themselves disappointed with the results stemming from various products promising to relieve their pain, and with that – Lifepro Fitness was born. Joel's mission is to have a positive impact on millions of lives with the Lifepro brand. Whether it's finding new and innovative ways to help people recover from injuries or developing products to improve overall wellness, Joel is always looking for ways to push the boundaries. Thanks to his commitment to help people live their lives free of pain, Lifepro has been able to do this for thousands of people since its founding in 2017.